Words and Music of C.L. Quigley

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Greetings to my new followers, all 800+ of you! Since being Freshly Pressed, I feel like I’ve been riding The Great Wave off Kanagawa.

I ate Spam for breakfast, and I’ve kicked some cans to the curb, but I’ve done my best to respond to comments and messages. The best way to say hello is to join in the discussion in the comment section.

I’m grateful to WordPress editors and thankful for new fans. I’m especially thankful for my pre-press friends. I promise to present several new poems each month, while I juggle my Anthropology studies. The tide will come and go, the Poet will not.

The Gunslinger journeys to ascetic elevations…

Expect some changes to this website, as well as surprises for poetry month in April. I hope you’re not disappointed when I post some poetry!

Poet and essayist Margaret Elysia Garcia hails from southern California to the northern Sierra Nevada. I wouldn’t challenge this woman to a duel. Her written words are raw, and she aims straight for the heart.

each of us wears a .45
and each of us is supposed
to shoot the other
if the other behaves strangely
we wait for a long time
until I feel itchy all over
is my gun loaded
I want to check
but I worry he’ll think
that’s strange

we haven’t been given
a list of strange
behaviors to look for
so I continue to wait
I begin to wonder
if I’ve gotten mixed up
maybe we’re not supposed
to move at all
maybe we’re supposed
to hold ourselves
perfectly still
like the models in an art class
until we truly believe
we’re made of marble
or oil paint

I’ve never shot a gun
never even held one until now
I grew up in the wild
on a preserve of land
one square mile in area
a white lion named
Kimba lived there and many other…

In the music world, covers and interpretations are frequently mixed up. Most often, interpretations are mistakenly referred to as covers, ouch! Here, I’ll take you on a brief music etymology diatribe, so you’ll be ready for your next open-mic night.

A “cover”is when I learned how to play a Maroon 5 song when I began to play guitar and sing. A cover is yet another performance of Old Crow Medicine Show’s “Wagon Wheel” at your nearest open-mic night. A cover is the “Tribute to the Beatles” cover band playing in Reno this weekend. A cover is often a tribute to the original song, group, or artist. A cover is when an aspiring musician performs a song in close likeness to the original. Vocal inflections, tone, time and feel all attempt to honor the most well-known recording of a particular song. Most musicians begin their musical careers with cover songs. Learn the chords for Nirvana, James Taylor, Taylor Swift or Adelle songs, and you’ve got a friendly list of covers to perform at the local bar on Tuesday nights.

An “interpretation” is when a musician creates a new song out of an old song. An “interpretation” is inspired when an artist believes they can make new art with another artist’s canvas. Musicians even compose and perform interpretations by their peers. An artist may love the original song, but she hears another version stirring within her, and the interpretation becomes her own. A well-known example of interpretation is Jimi Hendrix’ “All Along the Watchtower,” which was originally composed and performed by Bob Dylan. Interpretations have immense artistic quality, and the new music stands alone. Some pieces of music have historically had many successive interpretations. Even songwriters who perform their compositions are interpreting their own work! One music composition need never be performed the same way twice.

Next time you’re jamming with friends or enjoying open-mic night, knowing the right lingo can go a long way towards not sounding like a boob. If you’ve been working on a Mumford & Sons cover, say so. If someone just performed a soulful, acoustic interpretation of Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off,” say “Hey guy, I like your interpretation…”

Singer-songwriter Joan Baez is the queen of musical interpretations, whether she’s interpreting her own works or the works of others. In 1964, Baez made Phil Ochs’ “There But For Fortune” a chart hit. I like this interpretation…